New kitten owner needs HELP

[newcatowner11]

This past Saturday, after many weeks of searching, we adopted a 4-month-old male neutered kitten from the SPCA. It is just myself and my 5-year-old son and we live in a large apartment. The kitten is strictly indoor. Everything is going great..except for the problem is being awakened at night:

My son and I have futons in one large bedroom because I use the other room for a playroom/office. We decided that we wanted our cat to sleep in our room with us. So the first night, he layed down with us at 10 pm..but about 4:30 am, he woke us up by attacking our feet and trying to play with us. Of course, my son was thrilled with his playfulness..and woke up and wouldn't go back to sleep..and..to make a long story short..it was a long and tiring morning!

So, I asked around a bit and was told that when the kitten wakes us up, we should guide him out of the bedroom (not carry him) and take him to his toys in the other room...and close him out of the bedroom. I was told to be very nuetral about it with no playful or "sweet talk" to the kitten. The idea is to get him to understand that the beds are not for play..and he must learn to play alone in the mornings.

So, this morning we tried it because he woke us at 5:30 am. I led him out of the room with a toy..tossed the toy in the livingroom..and closed the bedroom door. Of course, he cried and cried for nearly an hour while pushing and scratching on the door. My son was complaining because he couldn't get back to sleep...but I made him stay quiet until the kitten stopped crying. We didn't want to reinforce the crying! It was awful to hear how desparate the kitten was and I felt awful..and to top it off I was sleep-deprived with a pounding headache!

Although this technique makes sense, it was so hard! I have this fear that this will go on every morning for the rest of the kitten's life! I don't know what to do. We are absolutely bonded and devoted to this kitten and in no way are considering giving up..but I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing here.

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you.

[jason]

The kitten is strictly indoor. Everything is going great..except for the problem is being awakened at night

great, indoors are the best for him. waking you up huh? heh.

he layed down with us at 10 pm..but about 4:30 am, he woke us up by attacking our feet and trying to play with us.

sounds typical for a playful cat. you might want to observe his sleeping and playtime patterns, perhaps you could initiate more playtime with him very near bedtime and get it out of his system. chances are he is sleeping during the day (mostly) and is rested up by about 4am or so.

was told that when the kitten wakes us up, we should guide him out of the bedroom (not carry him) and take him to his toys in the other room...and close him out of the bedroom. I was told to be very nuetral about it with no playful or "sweet talk" to the kitten.

not sure how sweet talk would hurt, i would think it would help...making the expierence as positive as possible is the best. want him to feel its a "good" idea to go into the "play area" when he gets up. your probably not going to get the word discipline into his vocabulary anytime soon without making situations positive/happy.

Although this technique makes sense, it was so hard! I have this fear that this will go on every morning for the rest of the kitten's life! I don't know what to do. We are absolutely bonded and devoted to this kitten and in no way are considering giving up..but I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing here.

take time with him, im sure even with the training he will cause some restless nights from time to time (dont we all)...but if you keep it positive and try to play with him alot during the later evenings you might be able to help him adjust a bit to your sleeping arrangements.

[Jen]

Congratulations are your new addition. Fear not, this will not go on for the rest of the cat's life. He just needs to mature a little. Playing and possibly eating late in the day, before bed, might help him sleep longer. but it is perfectly normal fo a cat to be active early in the morning. Have fun with him, he will not be a kitten forever, and you may just miss his neediness as he becomes more independent.

[kate & kobi]

I agree, just tell yourself "This, too, shall pass" ... in a few months you'll probably notice that he has calmed down. And by then, you just might miss it.

It sounds like you're doing great.

[newcatowner11]

I just wanted to thank all of you for your quick response. I definately feel better knowing not only that this is normal..but that it will pass. I feel much better!

Thank you!

W

[Lori & Ashley & Gilbert]

I came here to post almost the exact same question. I really wish Gilbert could sleep in our room but he wants to bite our toes all night! We play with him a lot before bed time but so far, he's just too rowdy before the sun even comes up. So, we close our bedroom door and he wakes us up around 4 am crying but it only goes on a few minutes. My 2 yr old wakes up crying when she hears it and it's a bit of a mess, but we are trying to adjust. I am a stay at home mom and Gilbert has our undivided attention all day and all evening. When we are sleeping is the only time he is away from us. I actually think Gilbert is a little spoiled. He naps on me every chance he gets during the day time and there is a lot of cuddling all day, all afternoon. I am pretty selfish about my sleep so I don't feel guilty for closing my door at night, I just wish Gilbert would stop waking us up so early. I guess eventually he will.

[newcatowner11]

Hi Laura, Ashley, and Gilbert. Wow..I'm so sorry to hear that you are going through this too...but it does make me feel a bit relieved to know that someone is in a very similar boat as us! I'm pretty selfish about my sleep too. Our kitten, Scout, actually did much better last night..and I do have a suggestion for you.

Last night, Scout jumped in bed about 4:30 trying to get us to play. So I immediately picked him up and placed him on the floor next to the bed and said..with a firm, deep voice "No". The first five times I did it, he just jumped right back up again..but after the sixth time he got tired of it and left the room. If he jumped up and just laid down, I praised or..if I was too tired to speak..I just stroked his head once. It was only when he tried to play that I said NO and put him on the floor. About an hour later after all this...I felt something above my head and I realized he was sleeping above me on my pillow. He was very good the rest of the night..and actually slept till 7:30!

I also created a new rule that there is no playing with Scout on the beds..so he won't associate the bed with playtime.

I also noticed that Scout is pretty needy right now too. I know a lot of this is about being in a new home with no other kitties around. I got home from work yesterday and he cried and cried even while he was sitting on my lap..and I had only been gone for a few hours! This too...I'm sure will improve. Another thing I did that you might want to try is to get a kitty condo..or anthing that he can lay on that is fairly high..and place it in front of a window that allows in fresh air and where he can see and hear things going on. Scout lays on his all the time watching the world go by.

So, I've learned a lot the past few days. I know it isn't easy...but from my experience..kittens are a lot easier than puppies!

Best of luck to you!

W